Aa..ha! [Thinking Inside The Blog!]

Thursday, January 01, 2015

To be completely engrossed in reality and merge into it; to absorb everything in the world and respond back to it so casually and efficiently that the give and take is seamless, there appears to be just one entity in all and there is no such thing as unproductive friction.

Or....to be amazingly unperturbed and detach oneself thoroughly from reality, as if it were of no consequence whatsoever. To be as if nothing actually happened even whilst everything happened.....if you get my drift. To behave like there is no other entity apart from the self.

Some enlightened souls, of course, would have us believe that both these ways are exactly the same. ;) #zen #paradox

Wednesday, November 26, 2014

It is not the critic who counts;not the man who points out how the strong man stumbled or where the doer of deeds could have done them better.The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena,whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood;who strives valiantly;who errs and comes short again and again;who knows great enthusiasms,the great devotions;who spends himself in a worthy cause;who at the best, knows in the end the triumph of high achievement,and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatlyso that his place shall never be with those timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat. ---Theodore Roosevelt

Wednesday, June 18, 2014

13 parallels between Life and Driving.We are already familiar with almost every idea that this analogy/metaphor has to offer. But I still like it packed in the cover of a metaphor.

1. Reduce your speedIs it really nice to be rushing around and clucking (clutching & braking?) like a mad hen all the time? We need to remember to slow down quickly (heh heh) and frequently enough

2. Don't compete or raceThis is a guaranteed way to make sure we lose it or feel stupid as we go about life. By all means, let's do it if we don't mind dents in our mental-makeup

3. Don't compareLooking at other vehicles (hey, look, a Lamborghini) instead of focusing on the road in front of us. Drooling over what others have rather than driving down our own path joyously. We are bound to crash into something and slip into permanent depression

4. Fuel upIf we're not sure about the what, where, when and how of the fuel we need in order to go about our journeys, it's quite likely we may be stranded in the middle of nowhere. Must identify and store some fuel (inspiration) to help us run

5. Focus on the drive rather than the destinationConstantly worrying about where we need to be rather than concentrating on and enjoying the drive is a pity. Can't help it at times though

7. Don't obsess over the scratches and dentsHard. It happened. It will be there. Maybe we can get it tinkered at an affordable cost. If not, can we just let it be?Dealing with nasty co-travelers on the road is more difficult than this but perhaps the same philosophy can be applied there as well

8. Switch on the stereoTiddly tumty tum and Tra laa la. Got to energize ourselves and listen/dance to some music. Let's not forget the controls if we happen to be listening to music while driving. Shaking a leg, of course, requires us to stop for a while

9. Master your parking skillsAt times, we'd have to make do with what we get and fit our lives into available or unusual slots. In other words, be prepared to play with the cards we've been given. Psst, we can either loosen up and go for it or, sometimes, pay for valet parking

10. Drop off your vehicle for serviceBefore or after some journeys, drop off the vehicle at a service station. The vehicle probably needs a complete wash/new parts/paint. Relax and rejuvenate at intervals

11. Know the important road rulesEspecially the ones related to dignity, courtesy and safety. Let's not jeopardize other travelers' lives

12. Get a trainer or a coachThe right ones might instill some confidence and give us the essential practice and tricks necessary for survival and success

13. Keep the emergency support numbers handyDo we know how to sort things out and resume our journey if and when there is a break-down? If yes, there's a lot to be proud of and happy about. Else, let's keep the emergency numbers accessible at all times

Sit in a train to some place far away. Play music on a device of your choice. Melodies; not some fast and insane numbers. Look out of the window.

Acknowledge the greenery, cows, and other fauna. But focus on the sky. Watch out for birds (alone or in a flock) that are flying, gliding, soaring or zigzagging along. You will notice that their movements more or less coincide with the rhythm of the song or the interludes more often than not.

The birds, however, are, mysteriously, unaware of their ability to choreograph to songs they have never heard in their lives. If a tree falls in the forest and no one hears it fall, did the tree make a sound?

To knock someone's door and ask for something is an act of compassion at times.

If you trust yourself, are willing to give and enjoy collective happiness, when someone asks you for something, you might be surprised to discover how much you really have and are able to share....and that spans across many things......affection, knowledge and time.....

The gap between inspiration and insignificanceThe gap between action and thoughtThe gap between perseverance and pessimismThe gap between understanding and ignoranceThe gap between enjoyment and boredomThe gap between I did it and If only I had done itMay quite easily be filled by the combination of............a competent coach and a capable and concerned community

Truth is like a butterfly. Colourful. Fascinating. Fleeting. And there are many fluttering in the garden.

You can focus and chase one all the way but still make space for appreciating a few different others on the journey. You can simply watch all of them enchanted by the apparent diversity. You can pick up a magnifying glass to study one and dive deep into it without letting it blind you to everything else......

Tuesday, March 25, 2014

the beverage of life from its mother's bosomthe warmth of affection from its mother's kissesthe courage of connection from its mother's umbilicalcordthe gift of the gab from its mother's murmuringsthe luxury of lazing around fromits mother's lap

the depth of sensitivity from its mother's gaze the courtesy to contribute from its mother's handsthe confidence of doing rightfrom its mother's advicethe bliss of being right from its mother's trust

Mother; the mother of all sourcesMother; the origin of positive forces

Wednesday, February 12, 2014

D-O-S-E: Dopamine, Oxytocin, Serotonin and Endorphin. Don't ask. It just occurred to me. (All right, I came across the first three in many articles. Did a little bit of research and discovered the last one)

Dopamine: When you find the knowledge asset you were looking for in the content sharing platform. Also, when you get a reward for writing the most popular asset in the repository - The reward chemical

Oxytocin: When you discover, interact and bond with colleagues who have similar/complementary ideas or share your areas of interest via the social networking platforms - The trust chemical

Serotonin: When you are the most favorite expert or most voted for expert in the expertise locator. When people approach you for help knowing that you have what it takes - The importance chemical

Endorphin: When pain is replaced with happiness; When you solve a problem with the help of a knowledge asset someone shared, an expert you discovered or colleagues you connected with in the content and people platforms - The pain to pleasure chemical

But, to start with, you need the action chemical:

Adrenalin: When you present your thoughts and learnings in a meeting or write a blog to share your knowledge - The action chemical

I wonder if Life is but a desperate effort on our part to run between success (I define it here as 'pursuing an activity that seems meaningful, ethical and joyous to your mind and spirit - following your bliss - and sharing your gift with the world') at one end and a sense of belonging (feeling the oneness that is so often talked about in spirituality) at the other.

The distance, methinks, is formidable for many. It is hard to imagine someone obsessed with ideas paying close attention to people and relationships. It is equally hard to imagine a compassionate person pursuing ideas with a zeal that ignores social consequences of any sort.

There is one powerful exception though; A lot of wise people keep telling us that the best and surest way to find happiness is by serving others (not limited to conventional ideas). H'm. See the point? It reduces the distance between success and sense of belonging to zero.

Buddha is quoted thus: "Don't believe everything you read". Abraham Lincoln also apparently warned people to not believe everything on the Internet. I don't know; Lincoln was the one quoted in that poster I saw on the Internet.

Logically speaking, how could we anyway believe everything we read? Just when you had permanently concluded that laughter is good for health, some researchers come out of their isolated offices and tell you that your organs might get ruptured or displaced if you laugh too much.

Just when you were sure that deep introspection is what might make you a better human being, some psychologists warn you about the side effects of deep thinking. Who wants to be a better human being but, at the same time, slightly insane? (Makes you wonder how they arrived at such a conclusion without thinking too much).

Not a single so-called Universal truth is left untouched or unchallenged. There are many ways to use rational thoughts to either construct or destroy the same case. People, meanwhile, simply choose what they want to believe and ignore everything else.

What next? We must simply wait for Mark Twain to tell us (via the Internet, of course) to start believing everything we read. That way, we'll take ourselves less seriously and life will be a lot more fun.

Going past a huge cemetery is somewhat like a situation wherein you see the Terms & Conditions of an essential service (life, in this case) - but you don't really read everything; you just scroll down the page.

But when you see a mortuary van on its way inside, you are reminded of the inevitability of the 'I agree' check box, irrespective of whether you really do agree or not. There is no way out.

Extending the metaphor, here's food for thought:

Do we dwell so much upon the T&C that we never reach the check box or realize its existence?

Do we jump, skip and hop across the T&C without a care and land on the check box with a jolly shout?

Do we read a bit of the T&C, get psyched out and surrender at the altar of the check box?

Tuesday, January 21, 2014

There are things (andtimes when) we constantly analyze, judge and evaluate; Categorize, take sides, conclude and declare. We are seen as keen participants; interested and perhaps intelligent. The inevitable consequence is to either cheat ourselves into believing that we knew it all or change with the climate a la a chameleon. Nothing really bad I guess - that is life as usual for so many of us because we are under constant pressure and have been conditioned to appear intelligent and interested.On the other hand, there are times when we are nonchalant and 'matter-of-fact'ish about there being a hundred things we can't really know, a hundred and one things we know we don't know, a hundred and two things we don't know that we don't know. Something unknown sets us free and we decide to suspend judgment (and its sisters and brothers) and just be. Maybe there's a thought or two that makes a strong appeal to be adopted but it is kindly dismissed after an internal struggle. These are the times when we manage to simply observe and trace things with an open, un-argumentativeand un-excited mind. It doesn't bother us that we appear not to exist or appear to be ignorant. Such moments are liberating. If we do not let thoughts from outside infiltrate our so-called ignorance.

Monday, December 30, 2013

Labels. We can't think without using them, can we? They turn into disastrous and murderous weapons when we employ them to judge people, events and ideas. How many times do we pause before sticking an imaginary label on someone or something? How many times are we willing to pull off that label despite realizing that perception is different from reality. How many times are we incorrigibly convinced that our labels are right forever?

Is it possible to stop our conditioning, experiences and intellectual limitations from dictating to our labels? Can we settle for labels that are empty until we are sufficiently engaged with the person, event or idea to know that the labels must perhaps remain empty forever? I don't know (to quote my niece on most matters).

The right place for labels is in the mind's lab where we secretly examine the label from multiple angles and don't let any of our prejudices and past experiences influence us while at it and......finally, shred them to pieces rather than let them splatter black on things yet to come.

Buddha is quoted thus: "Don't believe everything you read". Abraham Lincoln also apparently warned people to not believe everything on the Internet. I don't know; Lincoln was the one quoted in that poster I saw on the Internet.

Logically speaking, how could we anyway believe everything we read? Just when you had permanently concluded that laughter is good for health, some researchers come out of their isolated offices and tell you that your organs might get ruptured or displaced if you laugh too much.

Just when you were sure that deep introspection is what might make you a better human being, some psychologists warn you about the side effects of deep thinking. Who wants to be a better human being but, at the same time, slightly insane? (Makes you wonder how they arrived at such a conclusion without thinking too much).

Not a single so-called Universal truth is left untouched or unchallenged. There are many ways to use rational thoughts to either construct or destroy the same case. People, meanwhile, simply choose what they want to believe and ignore everything else.

What next? We must simply wait for Mark Twain to tell us (via the Internet, of course) to start believing everything we read. That way, we'll take ourselves less seriously and life will be a lot more fun.

“The secret of genius is focus. If you can laser your attention on any subject or project, it will reveal its blueprint to you. George Washington Carver discovered 325 uses for the peanut and 100 for the sweet potato! Great geniuses are powerful focusers. Many have been called eccentric or insane because they put aside worldly concerns for the sake of their music, art, architecture, drama, inventing, or writing. But they are the individuals who change the world, while those with scattered attention wade through mediocre lives. Geniuses don’t fritter their precious minds on mass trends. They create the trends that alter the masses.” ~ Alan Cohen

Wednesday, November 13, 2013

Question that I spotted recently- How does time influence us? HT: John Hovell

Such a critical question that many of us probably don't think about often! A movie I watched has helped me refine my thoughts on this topic. Thinking about it linearly, at one extreme end of the spectrum, we have people who are slaves of time and will dance to its tunes almost always.

Ironically, these are the people who want to conquer time, squeeze in everything possible and stuff the 'Time' bag till they are sure it can't hold any more. Which implies they are always under pressure and the dark cloud of unfinished tasks constantly hovers over their heads. They are likely to just fleet through most things in life as they are waiting for the next thing to happen. I can't help but think that the problem has become more severe with the explosion of concepts like multi-tasking, social networking and the subsequent personalized information glut. (Earlier it was plain information glut, with no special messages attached to it which means it was easier to ignore).

Those of us who are stuck in this constantly churning wheel of time would hardly enjoy the ride. And we have ourselves to blame for it. We are perhaps competing against others with time as the measure, have no clue about our real priorities and are addicted to busyness so as to shut off our wandering minds.

At the other end of the spectrum, we have people who may have no respect whatsoever for time and would rarely care about its delicate rules or limitations. Such a strong lack of respect for time can be no good either. It smacks of a lack of purpose, lack of knowledge of situations, lack of awareness of other social elements and addiction to laziness.

As in everything else, we need to hunt for Zen, the middle path, that lets us get the better of time when it really matters (a surgery, a relationship etc) and let it go when there is a need to pause for breath, joy, meaning and clarity of thought. A middle path that lets us take our eyes off the clock, slow down frequently and enjoy the moment that we occupy so much that the clock too is forced to stop in order to watch us.

In short, too much focus on time will lead to a negative impact on the quality of our lives while a lack of focus on time will reduce the quality of the positive impact we have on life.

Wednesday, July 24, 2013

Gut-wrenching noise of the goat from across the street. It is hard to bear the sound of his agonizing bleat.

He somehow knows what is in store but probably hopes for a miracle. What he does not know is half the world has to cry for the other half to cackle. Note: This post is not intended to offend or hurt anyone. It is only the expression of a personal feeling and can be applied in multiple situations.

I enjoy reading genuine self-help books that combine inspiring thoughts with compelling and actionable approaches, ideas and tips. A visit to a well-stocked book shop will prove to you that there is no dearth of books in the self-help section. But as a devoted pursuer of books, I think there are a few things to be wary of.

Depending on the phase of life you are in, your view of life in general and preferred approaches to dealing with its challenges, some books stimulate your thoughts and coax you into taking positive action while some other books are, at best, boring or misleading. Before you impulsively purchase a book, you need to relax, sit down, flip through the book, connect with its theme, structure and ideas. You also need to check if the writing style of the author appeals to your subconscious before you pick it up and rely on it to change your life.

Well, for a change, I did not have to do any of this to read "How a Good Person Can Really Win" (HGPCRW). The book found me via my blog. To start with, I feel quite lucky about it.

HGPCRW is not a book that one reads, feels good about and forgets. Nor is it a book that gives you something on the lines of a DIY (do it yourself) kit that you build and reuse everywhere. I think it is a book that you need to keep on your table and refer to regularly. It has plenty of interesting and thought-provoking stories and snippets that one cannot read once and absorb forever. It is a 'situational' book; a book that will give you something to ponder over in many important situations that you may find yourself in.

The book is split into three parts and the author has done some excellent and appropriate anecdotal research for each of these sections. Part 1 outlines the characteristics of people who resort to vile-like qualities characters. Part 2 unveils advice for the naive and is focused on specific situations. Part 3 gives the reader a set of powerful values to derive inspiration from.

Part 1, to me, was interesting and somewhat like reading the Politics and Page 3 sections of the newspaper. :-) It also made me wonder if normally good-natured people would resort to any of the vile-like methods when under severe pressure. When I moved on to Part 2, I was excited and intrigued by the stories and the anecdotes. Some situations were so familiar that I found myself grinning and reading the insights with gratitude. Part 3 seemed shorter than the other two parts but was a fascinating read because it was packed with concise and powerful ideas.

In a nut shell, I think this book will be a reliable "guide" that can be approached for advice during difficult situations. The insights will, I think, fascinate and appeal to many a mind.

Disclaimer: The publishers offered me the book for a review. However, the review is a pure reflection of my own experiences and thoughts and not influenced by any external entities.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

This post is in response to the excellent IndiBlogger contest "The Idea Caravan" jointly conducted by Franklin Templeton Investments The contest presents a number of inspiring TEDx format videos that throw the spotlight on people passionate about a specific cause and let them share their stories Source:Franklin Templeton Investmentspartnered the TEDxGateway Mumbai in December 2012.

Watching this man talk, I am filled with as much positivism and hope as with wonder. If one were to use the phrase "Food for thought" in the context of his talk, what one sees is an exciting and quirky buffet; a long queue of healthy as well as tasty dishes!This talk, in a nut shell, is profound at many levels. Ironically, I am, perhaps, not going to promote his cause per se as much as the other underlying messages that this man has for the world.

To start with, the talk is delivered in the form of an engaging story, filled with passion and natural humor. A great way to connect with and influence the audience, whatever may be the cause! #Leadership

Even for a language enthusiast like me, the spelling mistakes and broken English were not distractions. It was easy to dive into his talk with the curiosity that is natural when one watches a 'little educated person' (in his own words) whose impressive ideas contradict such a declaration. #Passion

If it was not already clear, it becomes clear after listening to this man that real education is not necessarily about going to school, religiously running through prescribed text books and clearing exams with high scores. Raw talent, that highly sophisticated and not so well understood element, cannot be ruled out. But it needs to be supported by a lot of reading, observing, thinking, adapting and doing and this is quite different from formal education! For example, he talks about a fascinating management idea such as "fail fast in order to succeed"! #Ideas #Education

He goes on to passionately advocate that Business is not about chasing money; it is about pursuing something that will have a measurable social impact! The precise measure is, in my view, a point that needs to be very carefully determined, but if all corporate entities were to have such an attitude, it is hard to fathom the good that it can do to the world at large. #Values

It is more than obvious, as one watches him, that we can learn to achieve anything, however ignorant we may be at the start. The approach that he emphasizes upon as a solution is "trial and error". Of course, it needs to be backed by purpose, vision and patience. #Perseverance

He declares "To lead a meaningful life, all you need is a problem!" Now, if that's not one of the simplest and most amazing philosophies in life, I don't know one when I see one. What a positive way of looking at a problem and turning it on its head in one swift and glorious gesture. #Wisdom #Positive_Thinking

Other subtle messages that come through are worth every minute of the talk - one needs to be prepared to take a lot of risks, throw caution to the winds, appear weird and maybe even lose the people because of whom one was inspired in the first place! #Paradox

I'd like to finish by saying that this story is a perfect example of the fact that success does not come easy, but if one is obsessed with the purpose, dismissing the obstacles in the path of success begins to look extraordinarily easy.

Wednesday, July 03, 2013

Arguably, the world at large is increasingly building low-quality products and services and is not able to support the multitude of greedily acquired customers because of wanting to scale up and grow (greed, unreal targets and what not) whilst not investing in equivalent support structures.

This means excessive multitasking, absence or lack of well-placed specialists, lack of focus on the core product or service, complexity etc. At the other end, sometimes the supporting structure even when present is so detached and clueless that it does more damage to the existing equation. Think call-centers.

Systems and individuals are stretching so much to keep pace with the world that they go beyond natural limits of elasticity and lose their original strength gradually or break. More alarmingly, such a misled world influences systems and individuals to lose sight of or compromise their real needs and values. :-/ #banks #insurance #outsourcing #retail #manufacturing #construction #you-name-it

Sunday, June 02, 2013

Don't ever judge a Chimpanzee by the way it behaves while stuck in a cage, especially if it has never been locked up in a cage, in the past. (You may, however, arrive at a few thoughtful conclusions about its nature when you study it in its natural habitat).

The poor creature will need to be locked up in a cage regularly and frequently enough for there to be a reliable pattern in its behavior. If it is true that apes learn from mistakes, then there could be an improvement over a period of time. Only if the Chimp is conscious of its behavior and desires to change it. What this implies is that you may end up changing its natural behavior when you subject it continuously to an alien environment.

About Me

In search of my most important mission ...meanwhile the motto is "Millions of mad, muddled, merry, mischievous, mesmerized, mean, marvellous and menacing monkeys on a mysterious and mind-blowing mission to Mesopotamia". ("Mamma Mia!" did you say? ;-)) Does that make any sense? If it does, you must be one in a million, umm, monkeys! Hold on! Just kidding, you know! OK, I guess I must confess that my motto actually is...."Love, Laugh and Learn!!" ;-) And, btw, Music may have no language but it sure happens to be my Mother Tongue.

3,2,1...Go!

This blog would love to meet introspective, life-loving and enthusiastic folks and book lovers. If you are aPlum(PG Wodehouse)/ C&H (Calvin and Hobbes)/Swami Vivekananda/Ilayarajafan, we may be one of a kind...!

herE GOes......

I enjoy being creative. Creativity, to me, is the best thing in life...! And...my love for life and learning are two great intrinsic motivators.

I have wanted to be almost everything in the world - a detective, an astronaut, a teacher, a scientist, an architect...a leader...a director, a musician, a painter, a singer, an ornithologist - you name it! To cut a long story short, the only thing I did not want to be was a Doctor! :) But destiny wanted me to be a KM professional. And I love being one!

I have a passion for the paradoxes and mysteries of life! I enjoy and cherish dreaming of magnificient achievements...those that have the potential to make the world a better place to live in!

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this blog are that of the blogger's alone and is not intended to be a reflection of her employer's views. The posts on this blog are copyrighted under the Creative Commons License but may be referred to or linked to with due credits. The blogger does not wish to be prescriptive whatsoever; the reader is requested to judge the information herein by his/her own standards before acting upon it. Readers cannot, thus, hold the blogger responsible for the consequences of acting upon information/thoughts/ideas/opinions herein.